Peace be with you, everyone!

Such a beautiful morning to be alive, isn’t it?? I walked out this morning to get the paper (yes – a physical paper!! It’s marvelous!) and immediately stretched my arms up high to the heavens in thanks as I breathed in the cool Virginia air…

My wife asked me what I was doing as she caught me in the security system (it alerts her anytime something sets off the front video camera), and I told her I was thanking God for letting me be alive, haha… She thought that was hilarious, but nothing funny about it to me! I am thankful!! I was on death’s doorstep a few weeks ago and I’ve been granted a new go at life!!

I’m also super thankful for an old friend in the space who I’ve reconnected again with and been enjoying getting to know more – Grant Sabatier of Millennial Money fame and best selling book, “Financial Freedom: A Proven Path to All The Money You Will Ever Need“.

He too sold his blog to The Motley Fool the other year, but recently had me on his popular podcast he’s rebooting and the energy between us was off the chain… Can’t wait to pass it to you when it’s live, but after the show we ended up getting into life and philosophy and all types of other good stuff, and he alerted me to a thing out there called “bliss consciousness.”

“Bliss consciousness is a state of pure openness to everything. It’s when you are living in the recognition that the same energy that created you created me, the trees, all of it. When you recognize that it’s all the same thing. When you completely surrender to universal consciousness, this energy works within you and reconnects you to the divine. “

Soooo beautiful!! And not sure I quite understand it *fully*, but I’m liking how it makes me feel… He says you get closer to bliss consciousness through dedicated meditation practice, years of devotion, a Guru’s direct blessing, or sometimes even spontaneously. It also expands over time. And my recent illness and near death experience with the car are apparently common conditions that can stir this type of energy in you with the ecstatic feeling as a byproduct of increased awareness.

I’m still taking it all in, but consciously or subconsciously his new mantra is infiltrating my life and I’m digging it! The “stirring of the Shakti” he calls it. I even channeled it during my yard sale hunting last weekend and the world provided me with this gorgeous wooden zen fish necklace for only $1.00*!! Lol… Which immediately brought me peace and inspired my whole wardrobe for the rest of the weekend 😂

Here’s a video I threw out on Insta while enjoying a lazy Sunday down by the river… Can you feel the blissfulness?? :)

[Is this what they call Boho Chic?! Lol…
My tie-dye shirt was $4 from Goodwill :)]

I’ll stop here as I know not everyone is into this sorta stuff, but if you are Google “bliss consciousness” and see if it stirs you up in any way… I’m sure I’ll be talking about it again at some point if it continues to flow through me :)

In other fun news:

#1. The Fool accepted my offer to buy Budgets back, ZOMG!!! This is gonna be so fun!! Gotta still get the contract and make it all official (hopefully by the end of next week), but the stars are starting to align! And really have to thank them SO much for not only bringing me back into the fold here, but really for the past few years of helping my dreams come true and being so generous throughout the entire selling and transitioning process, and even into tapping me to build out All-Star Money for them (R.I.P.).

It didn’t work out long-term, but it’s rare to find an organization where the culture matches you so well and they actually *care* about the people and work they do. So massive thanks for everything these past few years, Roger, Laura, Dana, Tracy, Chris and Bledsoe!! It truly means a lot, and has made this entire experience so much better cuz of y’all 💙

#2. My kids are out of school!!! I officially now have a 5th grader, a 3rd grader and a pre-schooler, eek!! Remember back in the day when I used to track every dollar it cost to bring a baby into the world?? And how I thought I could track it for 18 years but only lasted like 18 months?! lol… Funny to look back at how you saw life years ago and how much you change over time… You’re constantly evolving too so there’s really no such thing as permanence! Especially with kids!

We got them in some camps and vacays here and there throughout the Summer, but it’ll be interesting to see how much work I get done as TOGETHER they are loud and pure madness… Sweet as anything apart, but all three boys in one room = CHAOS. You boy moms know!!

#3. I’ve got a new collection of rings!!! I threw it out into the world last month that I wish I had more rings to rock, and then BAM! I start seeing them everywheeeeeeere I go now, and even at the same shops I always frequent, isn’t that wild? Or maybe that’s a part of all this bliss consciousness??!

It started with a couple $10 rings and then moved to a $60 one and now onto cheap vintage necklaces and bracelets too, lol… Though in my defense I’ve probably only spent around $100 for everything which is pretty damn good I think, especially as I wear the 4 rings every day now!! That cost-to-use ratio is on lock.

(And I also bring Baby Dime shopping with me for good Quality Time who also gets to pick out a ring or two for being  a good little helper… So it’s kinda become a weekly “experience” for us – at least that’s how I’m justifying it to my wallet ;))

Look how pretty!

[Can you tell which of the group was $60?
I gave you some help with the last one ;)]

And that’s a wrap for this week! Another fun, productive, and downright exhilarating time project-wise over here… Hope y’all had a healthy and happy week too! Will keep you updated on bringing Budgets back!! I’ve got ideas!!!

Favorite reads from around the community are posted below, and as always just hit “reply” and say hello anytime…

Your friend in bliss,

*The fish necklace was in a bag full of jewelry for a lot price of $3.00, but I snuck it out and asked if I could buy just that one necklace for $1.00 – why take a whole bag of stuff you don’t really want? People call doing this a faux pas, but I call it asking for what you want and seeing if you can get away with it ;) And it worked!

******

Favorite reads this week:

Finally, a Stock Market Crash! @ Mr. Money Mustache — “The world is scary and the stock market has plunged, but the fundamental picture hasn’t changed at all: billions of humans are working hard and applying their ingenuity every day to get ahead. People who understand this unchanging mechanism will look at this year’s sale on productive asset and say, “Cool – sign me up for another helping of future wealth, and thanks for the deal!”

Six Questions to Ask Yourself Before Making a Purchase @ Rich In What Matters — “Would the best version of “me” buy this? If the best version of you wouldn’t buy an item, then don’t. Before making a purchase, tap into your authentic self, and ask if you really need to buy the item. Consult your gut feeling. If it’s an uneasy one, listen and don’t make the purchase.”

How Can I Save When I Fear There Might Not Be a Future? @ Douglas Soi — “I always tell my students that personal finance is about your relationship to the future. And in this uncertain world, people, especially younger ones, are finding their relationship to the future hard. There’s a sense of anticipatory grief, dread, about how our world is going to look in twenty, or forty years.

Zero-Based Budgets: Templates and Examples @ Wallet Hacks — “Here are five excellent and free, zero-based budget templates to help you manage your money. I’ve included fillable spreadsheets and PDF printables for those who prefer to budget the old-fashioned way. 😉”

How to Travel for Free with Home Exchange @ Millennial Revolution — “The concept is simple. You stay in someone else’s home, they stay in yours. No money changes hands, and you become part of a thriving community of open-minded travellers who want to make friends instead of money.”

2022 Berkshire Hathaway Annual Shareholder Meeting Video, Transcript, and Notes @ My Money Blog — “Here are my notes on the 2022 Berkshire Hathaway Annual Shareholder Meeting. I enjoyed listening to it like a podcast first and then reading through the text a second time around. There are many financial media articles with highlights, but here are my personal takeaways and notes.”

You’re Probably Using the 4% Rule All Wrong @ The Best Interest — “The 4% rule assumes a “50/50” portfolio… If you’re using the 4% rule on a 100% stock portfolio or 100% bond portfolio, you’re using it wrong. Each portfolio (all stocks? all bonds? mix?) and each duration (30 years? 20 years? 40 years?) has a safe withdrawal rate that you can use as a benchmark. But it might not be 4%!”

Just Inked a Contract For My Next Book, and I Want You To Be a Part of It! @ JLCollinsNH — “We want to hear your stories! You can be at any financial stage of the journey and you can write about any aspect of it, and at any length. In fact, focusing on one small part – rather than the whole quest – would be good, and maybe better, than trying to tell your whole story. We are planning about 250 pages for this book, so space is limited. The earlier you submit, the better your chances of having your tale included.”

*******

// For previous newsletters: Archives (below sign-up box)
// To connect further: @Twitter | @Facebook | @Instagram | @LinkedIn

Good morning!

Back again this week with some juicy gossip and nuggets to share!

But first – a HUGE THANKS for the magnificent welcoming back party y’all so generously gave me in the form of notes and niceties all week! It gave me that extra burst of energy/confidence I needed to keep going with this 2nd Life of mine, and happy to report we’re still going full throttle over here with no plans on stopping ;)

In fact, that’s my new motto I’m channeling right now:

MORE DOING. LESS THINKING.

Who knows what the hell tomorrow will bring?! Tomorrow doesn’t even exist yet! Only today is real – and after years of getting stuck in this over-thinking phase I’m learning to let go more and MAKE MOVES or MOVE ASIDE, lol…

And in the spirit of this, I’ve got two major things to report today that I’m pretty excited about.

We’ll start with the juiciest one first – let’s gooooooooo!

*******

I can’t believe I’m typing this out right now, but…

I put in an offer to buy Budgets Are Sexy back! I’m coming out of retirement!!!

No plans for this whatsoever just a bit ago, but the opportunity came up and after staring at it just sitting there doing nothing – and the idea of it getting flipped to another outlet! – I just couldn’t resist and hopped on the phone with The Fool to see what we might be able to work out…

It’s not a definite yet so don’t want to give away too much and jinx it, but if it works out the plan would be to take it back to 2008 years of just being a FUN pure PASSION project again building out a community and spreading the good word like blogging was always meant to be… no Business/SEO/Strategic maneuvering (okay, a little strategic maneuvering so it still pays for itself), but basically going back Old School and starting fresh again.

I’m pretty stoked about it! Nervous as hell, but stoked! I was perfectly at peace with that chapter of my life, and now here we are opening it all up again for a chance of crashing and burning, haha… But it sure does make you feel ALIVE again, and that is exactly why I need to do it :)

I’m done trying to plan for the future and always looking for the *perfect* new project to work on because all that time wasted in between puts out *nothing* into the world, so why not just DO THINGS and then adapt?! If it fails it fails and you move onto the next shiny new project??!

And what another reminder yet again at how fast life can change… One minute your sick in bed and the saddest you’ve ever been, and the next you’re recharging your life’s work again and coming out of retirement with all the energy in the world. Gotta love it! And even if I don’t get Budgets back again, it’s been a fun alternative universe to think about and help stretch the mind…

So with or without the blog, I’m ready to get back out there again with my own project!!

And again have to thank you so much for all the love and emails recently… It really played a big part in my decision to go after Budgets again, and sometimes you forget sometimes how many beautiful people are in your community until you give them a reason to connect.

If you’ve been MIA for a while in your own communities, take a few minutes today to reach back out and let everyone know you’re alive!!! Restart all those friendships and be with your people again!! Who knows what type of inspiration will come from it!

The second bit of news here is also killer – but hopefully not literally….

I GOT AN OFFICIAL DIAGNOSIS OF MY DISEASE!!!! We went up to Johns Hopkins and met with a national specialist and found out what I have is in the same family as I mentioned last week but slightly different: “Pemphigus Vulgaris” – a rare blistering autoimmune disease that affects the mouth, nose, throat, eyes, and genitals (! thankfully haven’t experienced this one yet !).

It’s got no cure and will have to live with it for the rest of my life – BUT!!! – there are some miracle drugs/infusions and so long as I stay on top of it I could very possibly go into remission for 1-4 years at a time and then just repeat the treatments and live a relatively happy life. So yay!! Because if left untreated this thing will keep spreading and attacking myself until it eventually does me in 💀💀

And I can’t stop thinking about how LUCKY we are to be living in a time and place we do now because if this $hit hit you in a 3rd world country or in the 20th, 19th, 18th century you would be F’d. Slowly losing your quality of life as each day passes until you can’t take it anymore… Even this miracle infusion is relatively new at 4 years old when it was finally approved by the FDA!! And expensive as $hit!! ($60,000 I read somewhere if you don’t have insurance…). So even just the ability to have insurance is a Godsend!!

I’m waiting for the scheduler to put me on the books for my first infusion, and then from there I should start slowly getting better without the help of any meds!! A brave new world out there!! :)

PS: if you ever get spontaneous blisters, lesions, cuts, sores or anything else funky in your mouth, see a DERMATOLOGIST first! Took me three months and dozens of other doctors to finally get me to the right place and from there everything fast tracked and had a diagnosis and treatment plan within a month.

Also: document everything! I plopped down an 18 page report in front of the specialist with summary and timeline of all my symptoms along w/ 14 pages of pictures and I swear it not only saved everyone time but turned him on in the process 🤣🤣 Gotta do what it takes, right?? Haha…

*******

And that’s all the news I have for you this week… It’s been quite the week :)

Will keep you posted on the blog and other adventures, and in the meantime here are a handful of great articles I enjoyed as I was makin’ moves around town…

More Doing. Less Thinking.

Better to be working on something than nothing!

XOXO,

PS: That “Stay Stoked. Stay Hungry.” design is from one of my favorite new skateboarding/clothing companies I’m obsessed with: Shed&Shred. Small local shop – check it out!

*******

Favorite reads this week:

The Greatest Conversation Advice I Ever Received @ Becoming Minimalist — “If you aspire to be a good conversationalist, be an attentive listener. To be interesting, be interested. Ask questions that other persons will enjoy answering. Encourage them to talk about themselves and their accomplishments. Remember that the people you are talking to are a hundred times more interested in themselves and their wants and problems than they are in you and your problems.”

I Lost Money In Crypto So That You Don’t Have To! @ Get Rich Slowly — “I’ve found myself gradually being worn down over time. So many people endorse cryptocurrency, including people who seem to be savvy and smart. So, last fall, I succumbed to the mania.”

Investment Advice From The Simpsons: Just Don’t Look! @ Impersonal Finances — “If you’re feeling anxious about your portfolio puking up recent gains, remind yourself of Paul Anka’s jingle and just don’t look! Take a break from financial news. Stop doomscrolling Twitter. Instead, zoom out and embrace the buying opportunity, which is made easy by automating your investments. Keep those 401k contributions going as scheduled and tune out the noise.”

The Last Time Always Happens Now @ Raptitude — “There was, or will be, a last time for everything you do, from climbing a tree to changing a diaper, and living with a practiced awareness of that fact can make even the most routine day feel like it’s bursting with blessings. Of all the lasting takeaways from my periodic dives into Stoicism, this is the one that has enhanced my life the most.”

College Campuses Are Great Coworking Spaces @ Financial Panther — “When you think about it, college campuses are built for coworking. Consider all the features they have:

• Nice buildings and tons of comfortable spaces to work from.
• Free WiFi everywhere.
• Plenty of outlets you can use, so I can easily charge all my devices.
• Lots of young people working, which gives a lot of energy to the place.
• Tons of food options, so I can always get a good lunch or snack.
• Water fountains (and filtered water even).
• Clean public bathrooms.
• Lots of bike parking.

All these features were a major improvement from working in a coffee shop.

Live Your Dash with No Regrets @ Simple by Emmy — “I read of a man who stood to speak at the funeral of a friend. He referred to the dates on the tombstone from the beginning… to the end.  He noted that first came the date of birth and spoke of the following date with tears, but he said what mattered most of all was the dash between those years.  For that dash represents all the time they spent alive on earth and now only those who loved them know what that little line is worth.”

*******

// For previous newsletters: Archives (below sign-up box)
// To connect further: @Twitter | @Facebook | @Instagram | @LinkedIn

Gooooood morning, beautiful people!!

It’s your old pal J. Money! What’s good?!

I’m not gonna lie, it’s been a hot mess over here this first half of 2022 so had to lay low and hide for a bit as I was NOT a fun person to be around, haha…

From getting hit by a rare, nasty, autoimmune disease that landed me in the hospital for a week, to just general malaise of not being very creatively motivated, I had to take a break from almost everything online and just focus entirely on my health and mental clarity…

AND IT WORKED!!! Because here I am juiced up and ready to activate this 2nd Life again!!  Even if it is due to the handful of meds I’m on, lol… And I’ll tell you something… nothing gives you such an appreciation of life going from feeling like your on death’s door to just being “normal” again… I will never $hit on boring “normal” again – it is magnificent!!

And I gotta give mad respect to all others out there battling autoimmune diseases too because I had no appreciation of what that truly means in life, and how drastically it can affect you… I am in complete awe of  y’all living out your best lives despite it, and want all your secrets please!!! :)

So that’s been my life lately…

Oh, and I almost got hit by a car yesterday crossing the street in my euphoric state, lol… 3rd Life activated!!

Here’s a quick update on some other things, and then hoping to get back to our more regular weekly postings again starting next week if you’re up for it?

********

#1. All-Star Money shut down! (The curation site I helped build for The Motley Fool) We had a good run for about a year, but the direction from up high sadly changed and it didn’t make sense anymore for us to continue so I got the ol’ axe…. Which actually felt kinda neat to be honest as it had been a while since that happened, haha… And a lot less scary when you don’t depend on the income (thank you personal finance!!).

What it also means, is that for the FIRST TIME since striking out on my own 14+ years ago I have absolutely *NO* active projects or websites or anything to work on!! I am a complete free bird waiting for my next wormies to sink my teeth into!! Exciting and scary at the same time! So many possibilities to choose from, but without any force pushing you in one direction over another – a decision making nightmare for people like me, lol…

[click to watch my Insta pitch!]

But maybe you can help me with this?? Maybe there’s a project that YOU’RE super passionate and excited about that I can help turbocharge for you?

Because in all my years the *one* thing I know is that the person who absolutely LOVES what they’re working on will have a ton more success with it than those just doing something for the money or fame. When you live and breathe something the Success Gods guide you!!

And if you think I could be a good mentor for you, I’d love to chat and learn more about it :) You don’t even have to pay me in cash – you can buy me something off my WISH LIST!

#2. PF Swagger is effectively shut down. My random site I put together two years ago for fun – “The hottest merch in finance” – hasn’t felt the love by me (or mainly anyone else for that matter, haha) so it’s been on the back burner waiting to come off life support.. Maybe I’ll freshen it up one day and get going again, but probably not. It served its creative purpose for me back then and there’s just not enough merch coming out from our community to really make it thrive… Or even people to buy it all as Lord knows how frugal this lot is!!! ;)

#3. Coin Thrill effectively shut down. My coin collecting blog I started back in 2014. I still very much enjoy collecting and visiting my local coin club every month (NERD ALERT), but publishing wise I just haven’t had the urge to really make it “a thing.” The online community for coins and currency is so drastically different being filled with octogenarians and not the most tech savvy, haha, but I do genuinely enjoy the hobby so I’ll keep it online for a bit longer and see if anything comes of it…

#4. I’m still skating!! AND LOVING EVERY MINUTE OF IT! Been posting some of my new moves on Insta if you’re interested in following along – instagram.com/jmoneyyyyyy

This new hobby has probably done more good for my health and mental state than anything in recent years… Gets me in better physical shape (when I’m not breaking any bones at least), gets me OUTSIDE and breathing fresh air, and gets me a whole new community of friends to play with…  Even if they’re decades younger than me and prefer more illicit drugs than myself, lol…

#5. Money. Still paying attention to it! And growing! Past the budgeting and tracking every penny these days, but I do still update my Net Worth every single month going on year #15 now and still one of the best things I’ve probably ever done, finance-wise…

I’ll have to talk w/ the wife and see if she’s comfortable with me sharing an update after so many years (maybe if it’s just to you guys here in this newsletter than public site?!) but as they say, once a money nerd always a money nerd ;) I hope you all are coping okay through the madness that’s this stock market right now!! You know I don’t have to say it but of course I will – it’s a helluva buying period!!

#6. Derek Sivers collection of books. Lastly, here are a handful of books I’ve been obsessed with lately by Derek Sivers (of CD Baby fame). Something about the way he writes just really impacts me and actually makes my brain CHANGE the way it intreprets things… And each one of these is super short and easy to consume, as well as looks fantastic on the books shelf too :) Highly recommend!! More: https://sive.rs/

(I’ve read the first, second, and fourth one here – but not the music one… The first one (How To Live) is a fantastic way to stretch your mind on all the different lifestyle paths (all extreme) whereas the “Hell Yeah or No” one is more about decision making in life and business, etc… And then “Anything You Want” is super good for launching businesses and how to think about it all and treat it.)

Here are some passages that hit me:

********

Okay that’s enough about me!

Tell me what’s going on in your worlds, please!! What have you been getting into that’d been life changing?? Learning and exploring anything new?! Any super interesting wins – or fails?!

Hit reply to this email and tell me all about it!

The one thing I’ve missed the most over the past couple of years are all the people in our beautiful community here… I’m not sure what my next project will hold, but I do know it’ll revolve around connectivity in some form or fashion, and of course spew *positivity* to help balance out all the nastiness in the world out there…

Ain’t nobody got time for more toxicness in their lives!! Life is short!!! Let’s goooooooooo!

// For previous newsletters: Archives (below sign-up box)
// To connect further: @Twitter | @Facebook | @Instagram | @LinkedIn

[How ironic would it be if I bought this ;)]

Good morning, friends!

Hope your summers are going well! We’ve been on a major pool binging over here, trying to see how many *different* ones we can jump into by tapping everyone we know :) I think yesterday’s adventure hit 5 so far and the kids are having a blast! (and I’ll admit I am a little too, haha…)

I’m also still doing a little work throughout as well (first half of day = hustling, second half = playing!), and after months of making them I can now show you those videos I created for All-Star Money last year!

Check it out! –> JAY’S OSCAR WINNING VIDEOS

[Fair warning: some of these are pretty ridiculous, and may or may not have a point, haha… But they were fun to create! And I now have a MAJOR appreciation for what it takes to produce such things, man… Not gonna lie, some of these took us over 15 hours to make from start to finish and not even sure you could tell?!]

We’ll see if All-Star taps me to do more (?), but they were a fun experience and always nice when you get to see your finished products floating around the web :)

Here were my favorites if you don’t want to wade through the archives:

A Recap of 2020, lol

The 3 Budgets You Need to Have
(Lean, Moderate, Fat)

The Power of Compounding!

Adventures in Opting Out
(where I throw a lot of stuff!)

A Trick to Handling Rejection
(where I kick a lot of stuff!)

In other news, I jumped on a new podcast this month where we chatted about everything from home ownership to minimalism to my new obsession with skateboarding.

It comes from a NEW friend I’ve really enjoyed getting to meet (and learn from!) lately, Meg Nordmann:

• Journey to Freedom: Ep. 7 – J. Money on Minimalism in Business & Finance

And that’s it for me over here! Anything juicy going on in your world? Either financially or otherwise?

It feels soooo different these days compared to a year ago, and while I know we’re not out of the woods yet, it sure is nice SEEING PEOPLE again and visiting coffee shops! It really is the simple things in life that bring the most pleasure, isn’t it?! And simple usually tends to = free!

That’s it for this week… As usual, my favorite reads from around the web lately are featured below.

Don’t be a stranger!

******

FAVORITE READS AROUND THE COMMUNITY:

How to Remember You’re Alive by Raptitude — “One way to appreciate virtually any moment of your life is to pretend that the whole thing is already over. Your life came and went a long time ago, but for some reason you’ve just been sent back to this random moment, here in this office chair, or in line at Home Depot.”

The Difference Between a Museum and a Warehouse by Steve Adcock — “Don’t expose your heart and mind to just anything. You aren’t a warehouse. Instead, you are a museum. Your life is a beautifully-curated collection of truly valuable things that add something positive and meaningful every day.”

Picasso’s Bull by Mantaro Money — “If we strip down personal finance to its core essence, “the spirit of the beast”, what are we left with?”

Why I’m Not Hustling Like a Mother via She Picks Up Pennies — “This isn’t just about hustle porn and the people who buy into it. That Mom Hustle maternity shirt is symptomatic of something much greater: that this might be the very worst place in the world to take parental leave.”

It Is Better to Donate Than Resell via Becoming Minimalist — “More than any other, the most significant and recurring motivation to minimize our possessions comes from the opportunity that our possessions represent. Our excess could become a blessing to somebody else.”

Why “Follow Your Passion” Is Good Financial Advice via Incognito Money Scribe — “The primary purpose of accumulating wealth is to gain full ownership of your time for the things you’re passionate about. The ability to do what you want, when you want, for however long you want.”

It’s Time to Start “Requalifying” For Your Job Each Year via Accidentally Retired — “Even if your title is the same, even if your role is the same, continuously learning and improving is the single best way to guarantee yourself a big raise, promotion or job on the open market.”

“Could This Be a Heirloom Someday?” via The Frugal Girl — “Whenever possible, before you buy something that’s supposed to last, join me in asking, “Will this be useful and treasured for years to come?””

The Amount of Cash Flow You Need to Change Your Life via The Darwinian Doctor — “I believe there are two levels of cash flow that can be life changing: $1 of cash flow, and cash flow equal to 20% of your annual income.”

Series I Savings Bonds: A Safe Investment With a High Return via Get Rich Slowly — “I have never purchased a savings bond. That’s about to change. Right now, I like them better than a savings account or CD!”

******

And lastly, an awesome graphic I’m sure many of you can relate to :)

[via Accidental Fire]

Happy Weekend!

*******

// For previous newsletters: Archives (below sign-up box)
// To connect further: @Twitter | @Facebook | @Instagram | @LinkedIn

Good Morning!

It’s been a hot minute, eh? Y’all good? Anything juicy going down lately? :)

I built that DIY sunglasses rack up there that I was pretty proud of, haha… 3 years of figuring out how to keep all these things organized and then BAM – the idea hit me out of the blue! So funny how our brains work…

Other news around the Money household lately:

I’m still skateboarding almost daily! I can now ollie (jump) over things, and getting super comfortable going up and down skate ramps with much less fear too. Similar to other things in life, confidence is key! Only it hurts a LOT more when you fail at skating, lol.

I’m still dabbling in cryptos… and definitely losing more money than the opposite – hah! But shockingly it’s been a pleasurable experience. Mainly just cuz it’s so nice to be doing something different than indexing all the time, though of course 99.9% of our money is still invested there. Right now I have some Bitcoin, Ethereum, COIN, and of course Doge.

I’m still tracking our net worth every single month. Going on 14 years straight now! And while we don’t share them publicly anymore, you can see our last one here if you’re new to my stuff –> Net Worth Report #139: $1,131,601.03 (it was a juicy one!)

I’m still curating the best articles around the PF community at All-Star Money. Probably one of the best job I’ve ever had as all I do is read articles about money every morning and then share my favorites with the world! Similar to the Rockstar Finance days, only I actually get paid for it :) Been about 4 months now and looks to be growing nicely…

Speaking of All-Star, if you created anything COOL and FUN last year during the pandemic (2020), send it over to us as we’re putting together a page highlighting some of the best stuff and would love to include yours! It can be a video you made, an article, meme, gif, arts & crafts, whatever! As long as it’s *money* related we’ll consider it. Shoot anything you’ve got here –> allstarmoney.com/2020

We’re gonna be (finally!) sharing all the videos *I made* from last year too, which is great as I spent like 60 hours on them and they came out kinda fun!

Here’s a short one I put together for the “2020 fun” ASK if you wanna get a sense of the look and feel of them, or if you just wanna see my face because you forget what I look like :)

[Click to watch]

And lastly, I thought I’d share something I’ve been doing lately that’s REALLY helped me with spending money on stuff I want – especially as a minimalist.

And that’s the idea of always having a *back up plan* for whatever item I bring into the home. I’ve tried the “one in, one out” rule before, but that’s never stuck and so far this new one has really put me at *ease* whenever I’m considering something.

Basically, any time I really want something (a new book, antique, pair of shoes), I force myself to first come up with a Plan B for it so that way a) if I come down with a serious case of Buyer’s Regret once home I know *exactly* what to do next, and b) if it doesn’t fit, or it sucks (i.e. bad book), etc, I also know what to do with it next SO IT DOESN’T ADD CLUTTER TO MY LIFE – both physically and mentally! The worst is buying something only to then have that something bring you pain vs joy and now you’re really feeling awful about it.

Some of these Plan B’s have been donating it to a thrift store (bad book), re-selling it to a local shop (antique w/ buyer’s remorse), and then my favorite: donating it to a museum! Something I plan on doing with all my rare books/coins from my hometown unless my kids end up wanting them one day (not likely). Some of them are so specialized you can’t really just sell them anywhere, and while I could hawk them at my local antique shops similar to the antiques idea, the notion that I’m helping build out a “collection” that could one day be displayed for others to enjoy brings an IMMENSE sense of joy to this minimalist at heart :)

Though of course you still have to be careful with these Plan B’s as it does help you spend more freely, but at least it’s with double purpose!! First purpose: for myself to enjoy, second purpose: for others to enjoy, haha…

And really, isn’t that what happens with ALL THE THINGS we have? We may own it now, but it’s only temporary. Your house, car, TV, couch, it will all one day belong to someone else or something else  (dump) whether you plan for it to happen or not. So why not plan for it?

Your friend in finance,

// For previous newsletters: Archives (below sign-up box)
// To connect further: @Twitter | @Facebook | @Instagram | @LinkedIn

******

Some of my favorite finds from around the community last month:

This lesson from nomad life –> “You cannot rely on outside factors to make you healthy or whole. You have to provide that for yourself.” – APurpleLife.com

This mindset behind charity –> “When we see someone in need, we want our first thought to be, “how can I help?” not “what did you do wrong?” – ALawyerandHerMoney.com

This idea of taking “massive imperfect action” –> “It’s okay to trip, it’s ok to fall, it’s ok to make mistakes, as long as you are moving forward… It doesn’t have to be perfect. Making something happen is way better than perfect.”

This money date idea! –> “Once a month or so my wife and I have a money meeting. We jokingly call this meeting our monthly “Coffee Chat”. These clandestine meetings take place in the morning and under the noses of our sleeping daughters. On any given Saturday morning, we’ll make our way downstairs, cat burglar-like, to the kitchen to plot our escape from the workforce.”

These bad (?) arguments against Bitcoin –> The Top 9 (Bad) Arguments Against Bitcoin (I still can’t tell which facts are true and which aren’t, but it does help reading about both sides of the coin to better formulate your own thoughts)

This idea of being more effective in your giving –> Don’t Let Randomness Rule Your Giving Strategy

This realization from Steve after a visit to the casino –> “The day we arrived our net worth was at an all time high, the next day it dropped by $15,000. During that time I had lost a total of $5 at the casino and felt worse about losing the five dollars than I did about my portfolio losing fifteen thousand! What was that all about?” (I’m like this too! But also with money I *get*, like dollars I find on the ground or someone gives me, etc… Always feels better to receive *that* money than thousands more in my paycheck, haha…)

This recent podcast I was on –> From Sexy to Rockstar to All-Star: The Evolution of J Money (Earn & Invest Podcast)

And lastly, this quote from Kevin O’Leary of Shark Tank fame:

“Whatever you pay attention to, grows.”

Have a blessed weekend 🙏🙏